Flora is seeking advices and supportive comments from MTB community for upcoming site visit with District Council Member on 27 Oct 2008 regarding the needs to open trails in So Kwun Wat area for mountain bike activity.

I would support any attempt to open up new trails in Hong kong but don't forget that a lot of readers on this forum are not Chinese - any chance of a basic English translation ( apologies if you are French or Spanish)?

The HKMBA is currently talking with the AFCD/Tai Lam Country park about long term mountain biking developments – we would be happy to share our insight on MTB development with public representatives.

Granting access to the Country Park to Tuen Mun area residents is among our goals. We would like to see better access to the country parks but also a new network of shared trails (for bikers and pedestrians) developed on the North- East side of Tai Lam Counrty Park so Tuen Mun residents would have direct access to a place to ride MTB without using a vehicle to access the trailheads.

Regarding So Kwung Wat Road
So Kwung Wat is a road managed by the Water Supplies Department within the country parks. The distance between the Tai lam reservoir MTB loop and the park's boundary is approximately 500 meters. It takes less than 3 minutes to reach the boundary from the dam. This road is a logic access and exit to Tai Lam Country Park.

The Water department has judged this road section unsafe for cycling! The argument presented to justify that it was unsafe for pedestrians to walk this road if cyclist were coming down at the same time.

This argument is highly questionable: why is the section above the dam open? It's as steep as the section bellow the dam. Why are permited cars and motorbikes less dangerous?

Solution: Cycling lanes for riders going downhill
The HKMBA proposes to make a 2 meters cycling line on the left side of the road for cyclist going downhill. It would be mandatory to all cyclist riding down to stay withing the cycling line.
Pedestrians would be warned about the cycling line and advised not to walk on it. Cyclists could then cross pedestrians safely. The 2 meters wide zone would guarantee a moderate speed.

This "traffic regulation" could be applied on any "hot spot" in the country park road network. The same solution would work well on the road access to Ho Pui village where many conflicts between bikers and pedestrians took place.

This bike line could grant access to cyclists in many other locations like Tai Tam CP on HK island. This is the best way to regulate biker's and pedestrian traffic on steep roads.

HKMBA represents the interests of all mountain bikers in Hong Kong and we are aware of most of the issues bikers face. We are happy to participate and provide what ever information is needed. We have a team of trail designers and builders at our disposable and can provide expert advice to the government.

I have attached an article from the South Morning China Post that gives a good overview of the challenges we face.

Any effort to get more mountain bike trails is highly valuable to our cause.